


Rivals

by Stingythefish



Category: Mistborn - Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, F/F, bit of a slow burn, sorry - Freeform, spoilers: elend dies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:34:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24889201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stingythefish/pseuds/Stingythefish
Summary: Shan Elariel manages to kill Elend Venture, only to get captured by Valette Renoux and her group. Now a captive at Mansion Renoux, will she and Vin make amends? Will something else blossom in the Venture heir's absence?
Relationships: Shan Elariel/Vin
Comments: 16
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

Shan shot through the sky, Pushing at the new mistborn who had joined the fray.  _ Valette _ . That brat. What was she doing? Was she seriously  _ protecting _ Elend?  _ She must be more of a fool than I thought. _

The two danced through the air, Shan’s partner mistborn having already been dispatched by Valette. The small girl was surprisingly talented, as well as nimble. She danced away from Shan as they Pushed and Pulled their way among the towers of the keep. Irritating. Everything about Valette Renoux was irritating. The way she talked, the way she acted. The way she seemed to  _ attach _ herself to Elend, it was  _ disgusting _ . And even as a mistborn, she was irritating.  _ Fight, damn you, _ Shan thought in frustration.  _ Fight so I can kill you already! _

But Valette continued to run away.  _ Fine, then. _ If she insisted on running, then Shan would return to her mission. Quickly reversing directions with a Pull, she shot off towards where Elend Venture was supposed to be staying. Shan watched Valette’s face pale as her form shrunk away. Yes...she’d been trying to lead Shan away from Elend.

Shan wouldn’t be falling for  _ that _ anymore. Pulling herself towards the tower where Elend was staying, she felt the wind whip through her hair. It would be over in seconds, if she could get there. A knife to the neck, and it’d be over.

There was a tugging at Shan’s belt. Suddenly, a vial tore itself from her waist, and she frowned over her shoulder as it shot towards Vin. That had been... _ my atium. _ Pangs of fury and dismay shot through Shan as she suddenly stopped herself.  _ Too far, little mistborn. _ Atium was not easy to come by.

Valette Pulled herself up to the rooftop just as Shan alighted on it as well. They stared each other down, waiting for the other to make a move. Did Valette catch the atium vial that had been on Shan’s belt? It didn’t seem like she had it on her. Had she any atium of her own? If she did, it spelled bad news for Shan. She would be forced to run away, hoping she could outpace Valette until the other mistborn burned away her supply. 

For a moment, nothing happened. Then Valette shot a coin at Shan. She caught it in the air with her own Push, stopping it in midair, transferring the push to the two of them. Valette, being rather small, was shoved back. Shan grinned, flaring steel.

The sound of a coin hitting the roof cut through the silence. Valette suddenly launched into the air, and the coin that had been between the two mistborn rocketed off into the night away from Shan. The blonde stared up as Valette flew in an arc through the air, eventually coming down right beside the tower within which Elend Venture rested.

“What are you even doing?” Shan called. “Why bother protecting him?”

Valette met her eyes with grim determination. “You can’t have him.”

Dodging the question, then. Whatever. She’d be dead soon enough. Shan stalked forward, a glass knife in each hand. Valette annoyingly stood her ground, brandishing her own knives. They got closer and closer…

Blades swung, clashing against each other. It was a full on knife fight. Pewter kept the battle at a high intensity, both mistborns swinging with full force every time, never tiring, each one intending to kill. Shan gritted her teeth.  _ This one’s been trained well, _ she reluctantly admitted. 

What an enigma. Valette Renoux, a mistborn. In retrospect, it made a ton of sense. Such a meek, unassuming girl--the perfect cover for a brutal mistborn. And yet, Shan had never suspected it until now. That wasn’t the enigmatic part, though. No, what baffled Shan was the girl’s fixation with Elend Venture. At first, she’d thought it was a political move, if a foolish one; a smaller house attempting to curry favour with the powerhouse, Venture. But was she really taking it this far? The House War was on the horizon, and from what Shan knew from informants, House Venture wasn’t allied with Renoux--indeed, Renoux had no strong alliances in Luthadel to speak of. Saving Elend Venture tonight wouldn’t mean an alliance between Renoux and Venture, especially considering many noblemen would die before the War’s end--so why did Valette insist on protecting the boy?

A thought struck Shan. A stupid thought. It couldn’t actually be the case….

“You’re...not in  _ love _ with him, are you?”

Valette paused. That was all Shan needed. She slashed the smaller girl across the face with one knife, blood spraying, before dropping a coin and shooting directly upward.  _ I can’t believe it. She  _ is. Valette Renoux was actually in love with Elend Venture. What an idiot. What fool actually fell in love with another nobleman, especially one as powerful as a Venture?  _ What fool actually would bother risking their life to defend him? _

Valette gave chase, but Shan had a head start. Not wasting a moment, she climbed up onto the balcony and clambered into a room with a large hearth dying in a corner and an excessive amount of books on shelves that lined the walls. This certainly was Elend’s room. Dashing at a full sprint, Shan burst through a set of doors into the bedroom. There was no time to be stealthy. Elend jerked upright in his bed, eyes widening in surprise. Shan’s tin-enhanced ears picked up Valette’s swift pursuit. 

Not waiting an instant, Shan shot forward, straight at Elend. He scrambled out of bed, narrowly avoiding her knife. She growled, and threw the glass blade at his fleeing form. It flew true, and struck him in the shoulder. He tumbled to the floor, crying out in pain.

Valette appeared at the door, face paling in fear. She leaped at Shan, but the blonde slashed out with her remaining knife, warding the smaller girl off. The two stood on the bed, once again in a standoff. 

“You really  _ do _ love him, don’t you?” Shan said with a laugh. “That’s why you’re doing this.”

Valette just stared at her, expression grim. “Yes.”

Shan snorted. “You’re getting yourself killed for no reason. Even if you do save him, House Renoux won’t gain anything from it. You’d never be able to marry him, and there’s no time before the House War to possibly form an alliance between him and you that would result in a marriage. He’s forever out of your reach. Why bother saving him?”

On the floor, Elend groaned in pain. Valette’s eyes darted to him, but she said nothing.

_ Fine. Stay quiet. _ Shan threw her remaining blade at Valette, the smaller’s girl’s pewter-enhanced reflexes the only thing that allowed her to dodge it. In that split second, Shan Pushed herself off a metal sconce on the wall, shooting over to Elend. She tore the glass knife from his shoulder, eliciting a cry from him, before slamming the blade into the back of his neck.

He went limp as Valette cried out in fury and flew into Shan. The blonde removed her blade from Elend’s corpse and blocked Valette’s with it, narrowly avoiding a knife to the face. Tears welled in Valette’s eyes as their blades ground against each other.

“You….you….” Valette spat through her teeth, pain and anger and sorrow mixing in her expression. Somehow, despite Shan being larger and using both hands to hold back Valette’s knife, the smaller girl managed to continue applying the same relentless force into her blade while removing one hand from its hilt. The hand snaked down and retrieved a vial from her belt. Shan’s eyes widened as she watched Valette down a single nugget of atium.

_ Time to go. _ Using steel, she Pushed on the nugget during the brief moment it exited the vial, sending it into the back of Valette’s throat and roughly forcing the smaller girl off of her. Scrambling to her feet, she tossed a coin at the wall, Pushing herself out of the room. As Valette struggled to follow, Shan Pushed herself off the metal frame of a mounted painting and shot off the balcony. 

Now that Valette was burning atium, she unequivocally had the advantage. If she caught Shan, there would be nothing to prevent her from killing her. Luckily, atium burned quickly, and if Shan could outrun her, she would be safe. She would be running by this point anyway; her mission was accomplished and she was to return to Elariel Keep.  _ Still, if this girl follows me the whole way, I’ll probably be forced to kill her. _ Not that Shan had a problem with that; it would simply be annoying to have to deal with the irritating girl. Still, killing her should be easier once Shan arrived at her Keep where there were reinforcements.

Heart pounding, Shan Pulled herself through the sky. The towers of Keep Venture whizzed by, and she would soon be forced to switch to bounding off coins tossed to the ground. Shan reached into her bag of coins, readying one--

Pain struck her square in the back. She cried out as a coin lodged itself between her shoulderblades. Then another one slammed into her side, then another smacked her thigh. A barrage of coins, each one perfectly aimed to intercept her no matter where she moved, came barrelling at her. Desperately, Shan tried to find another nearby spire to Pull on, yank herself away from the fire, but she was on the edge of Venture Keep, and she’d need to set down another coin to get herself moving again. Her fingers desperately tried to cling to one in her bag as she slowly began to fall to the ground. Strength failed her, her pewter growing dangerously low, and reluctantly she Pulled on a spire behind her, towing herself back somewhat in the direction she’d come from.

She hit the spire, clinging to the metal it was made from, hoping against all hope that Valette hadn’t noticed where she’d went.

Things didn’t go her way, of course, and Valette appeared, flying through the air, face contorted in rage. Shan, weakened as her pewter reached its last legs, slipped over the edge of the spire’s roof, landing on a balcony below. If they were inside, among other people, surely Valette would stop, unwilling to risk exposing her mistborn identity. 

Shan limped down the steps, not about to risk looking behind herself to see if Valette was still following. Just a little more...surely there was a servant here that would see them, and make Valette stop. The pathetic girl was too weak to murder a servant.  _ Anyone, _ Shan thought desperately,  _ please… _

Miraculously, footsteps echoed through the stone stairwell. Really rapid ones. Shan frowned as a  _ Terrisman _ appeared, moving incredibly quickly before screeching to a sudden halt. She recognized him--this was Valette’s steward. Her heart sank. The steward likely knew of Valette’s true abilities; she wouldn’t hesitate to kill Shan in his presence.

As if she were an executioner raising his axe, Valette appeared behind Shan, a coin readied in one hand to fire into Shan’s head.

“Vin, wait!” The Terrisman called out.

Shan frowned. Inexplicably, Valette paused.

“She killed him,” the smaller girl spat. “She deserves to die.”

The Terrisman put out calming hands. “Perhaps. You don’t need to end more life tonight, though. You have the choice to spare her.”

Shan glanced behind her. Valette actually seemed to be  _ considering _ it. But then, she shook her head. “Even if I didn’t despise her, she knows I’m a mistborn. I have to keep my secret.”

“There are no more balls after this, Vin,” the Terrisman said. “The House War is about to start. Your secret doesn’t matter anymore.”

“She could come after me,” Valette retorted. “Now that I know her secret. She might try and silence me.”

“She won’t. Kelsier paid Keep Elariel a visit tonight. Their members are all dead. She has no family to return to.”

Shan felt her heart freeze.  _ What? _ Her family? Dead? That...that was impossible. He had to be bluffing.

“All the more reason to kill her now,” Valette said. “Best she join her family.”

“Or,” the Terrisman said, voice strangely calming, “you could spare her. Show her mercy, Vin. Be better than them. They kill without abandon. Prove that you’re above that.”

A conflicted expression appeared on Valette’s face. She held her knife up, seeming to debate what to do. “I…..I….”

“Go home, Vin,” the Terrisman said softly. “I will deal with her.”

Valette actually put her blade away. Tears streamed down her face, and she turned around, dropping a coin to the floor. The girl soared off into the night.

Shan breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn’t believe it. She was alive. And it was thanks to this...Terrisman of all people.  _ Valette’s _ Terrisman. Why had he advocated for sparing her? What was his game?

Her pewter at last burnt away. Her bruises and injuries seemed to worsen suddenly, and she collapsed to her hands and knees. 

The Terrisman bent down, hands laying on her shoulders. “Are you alright?”

_ What do you think? _ Shan slapped away his hand. “Get away from me. I’m going…” Back home. But she didn’t have a home, did she? Unless this man was lying. He must have been. She had to believe that.

“You’ll succumb to your injuries long before you reach what’s left of your Keep. Come, let me take you from here.”

Shan glared at him, and tried to Push on his earrings and bracers. Strangely, they didn’t seem to be affected. “I don’t need your help.”

“That seems untrue, I think,” he replied. Not asking, he scooped her up into his arms and, somehow, seemed to grow  _ larger _ . Was Shan getting delirious, now? But she didn’t have the strength to resist him, and indeed, it felt good to let herself relax as he carried her down the steps. 

At last, she felt her energy die, and Shan passed out in his arms.

Voices.  _ What? _

“Sazed, what is this?” An upset voice. Masculine.

“The young lady is recovering from her injuries. I have given her pewter to help the process.” Calm, soothing. A slightly familiar voice.

“You damn well know that’s not what I meant. Why did you bring a  _ noblewoman _ back to base?”

“Her entire family has been murdered. I do not blame you for what you have done by any means, Kelsier, but she has nothing, now. Is it so bad to take mercy on her?”

“Yes. She’s  _ noble _ , Saze. We hate noblemen.”

A pause. “So you would kill her, now that she is no threat, causing no harm?”

A scoff. “She’s hardly ‘no threat’. Vin told me what happened. She’s a mistborn. Once she wakes up, she’ll try and kill us all.”

“Not if we deprive her of the proper metals. I shall personally keep guard over her.”

“No, Saze. We need you elsewhere. I’m not about to waste you by looking after this one. Killing her will mean we don’t have to worry about her, period.”

Another pause. Longer.

“You’re not going to give this up, are you?”

“No, Lord Kelsier. If she really becomes a problem...then I will allow you to dispatch her. But for now, I implore you, please allow her to live.”

A sigh. “Fine. You did good work today.”

Footsteps. Then silence. Shan had heard the conversation, though her eyes remained close and she knew she was on the brink of passing out again. The words hadn’t made much sense to her delirious mind. What were they talking about? What was going on? Why was she...in a bed? Everything felt so hazy, understanding just beyond reach.

At last, she fell unconscious again.

Shan awoke some time later. She was in a plush bed, and it was dark, only a lamp lighting the room. She slowly sat up, and her entire body cried out in protest. Pain dotted her body, though pewter muted it. Slowly, memories returned to her. A fight high over Keep Venture...Valette Renoux...and Elend Venture, dead on the floor. Then, a dozen coins pelting her body...and a Terrisman.

That same Terrisman who’d saved her sat in a chair at the foot of her bed, wearing spectacles and reading a book. He looked up as she moved, and smiled warmly.

“Ah, you’re awake.”

“Where am I?” Shan demanded. Details still were gradual in their return to her mind. She’d completed her mission….shouldn’t she have gone back to Keep Elariel?  _ No...my family… _

“You are at Mansion Renoux. In Fellise.”

Fellise...that was miles outside Luthadel!

“I have to go,” Shan said, getting out of bed and flaring her pewter to lessen the pain of her wounds. 

The Terrisman quickly got up and stepped in front of her. “I’m sorry, Lady Shan, but I cannot allow you to leave.”

“Why not?” Shan growled. If only she had all her metals…

“Well, for one, you are our captive, though I have attempted to make you as comfortable as possible here. For another, there is a House War going on, and if you return to Luthadel now you may be caught in the crossfire. Lastly, your family is destroyed. They are all dead. You have nowhere to go back to.” He said the last part softly.

Shan froze. “You’re lying. My family couldn’t have just been killed out of nowhere.”

The Terrisman nodded sadly. “Unfortunately, my lady, they were. By one of our member.”

“Valette?” Shan spat. “My family wouldn’t fall to that pathetic girl!”

“Not Vin,” The Terrisman said. “Another mistborn of ours. One with more practice, more skill. He has a reputation--and habit--of murdering entire noble households in a single night. Trust me, Lady Shan, you are the only Elariel left.”

Shan felt her face pale. Her body refused to work. What? No, that couldn’t be. Her family, dead? This had to be a lie. It  _ had _ to. “I don’t care. I have to go back.” She tried to shove past him, but he put his hands on her shoulders and kept her in place.

“You cannot. Even if your family were alive, you are now our captive, and we cannot have you slipping out. If you tried to escape, we would be forced to kill you, for fear of your knowledge of Vin’s true identity slipping out.”

That stopped her. Suddenly, even with her pewter, she felt incredibly weak. Shan stumbled and fell to a seated position on the bed, staring numbly at the floor. “So...her name isn’t Valette.”

The Terrisman nodded. “Call her Vin. And, call me Sazed.”

This was crazy. Ridiculous. “Why bother saving me, huh? Why not just let the girl kill me?”

“I do not believe in senseless murder. What we are doing will cost many lives, yes, but in the end it is going to save many more. Yours, however, needs not be ended. When I saw you last night, knowing your family was gone, knowing you were on the brink of death, I knew I couldn’t let you die. It would be murder without good reason.”

“Without good reason? I’m an enemy mistborn. I could kill you all!” Why was she arguing so strongly for her own death? Somehow, she found she didn’t care. It made no sense. None of this made any sense. She shouldn’t be alive.  _ Why? _

“Only with the right metals, which we will restrict from you,” Sazed replied. “Lady Shan, have you heard of the Kailan people?”

She frowned. What? What was he talking about now?

Sazed continued. “The Kailan believed that killing was always a last resort, and that if you committed murder, you were forever scarred. They so abhorred it that they didn’t even take the lives of animals, living an entirely vegetarian lifestyle. To them, life was the most sacred thing of all, a gift from the heavens. To show mercy was said to be an act which could pay dividends tenfold. One of their most famous legends spoke of an ancient warrior who spared the life of his most hated rival, who later saved the warrior’s daughter from near certain death.

“I do not know the future. But I do know that mercy is a virtue which I value greatly. In sparing you, perhaps you will repay the favour when it matters most.”

Shan stared at Sazed, dumbfounded. This had to be the strangest Terrisman she’d ever met. “Whatever. I don’t care about your...weird legends.” She lay down on her back, staring up at the ceiling.

What was she going to do now? She was staying at a foreign noble’s house, essentially a captive, her family was apparently dead, and the House War was starting. She couldn’t even participate in it, not with these people keeping her trapped in here. She was stuck, whether she liked it or not.

“So? What am I supposed to be doing, now that I’m here?”

Sazed’s expression softened into a calming smile. “For now, while you recover, you will be kept to this room. Renoux Mansion has many books for you to keep yourself occupied while you heal. You will be given meals three times a day, but should you ever find yourself hungry at any other point, feel free to ask. If you require the bathroom you may also ask. I will be present as much as I can, but when I am not, a guard will be posted to watch you.”

Shan clenched her jaw. Forced to spend her days in one room?  _ I suppose I don’t have much of a choice. _

Sazed looked hesitant. “Given time, once you recover….you may be able to be allowed outside this room. Maybe. We shall see. For now, rest up. Would you like a book to entertain yourself?”

Shan shook her head, sighing in irritation. “What about Val...Vin? She hates me. Is she really okay with me staying here?”

“I will deal with her.”

Shan eyed him. Was he not a Terrisman? A servant? Vin could do whatever she wanted, especially seeing as she was a mistborn.  _ But...he  _ did _ convince her to spare me. She could’ve ignored him completely. _ Perhaps this odd Terrisman had some sway over her, somehow.

She shrugged. “Alright.” She rubbed her arm, looking away. “Thank you.”

Sazed smiled. “You are quite welcome, Lady Shan. Please, get some rest.”

Reluctantly, she slipped herself under the covers, lying on her side, staring at the flickering flame of the lamp. This still all felt too unreal. Just yesterday, she and her family were gearing up for the House War. Now she was captive in another city? 

A part of Shan wanted to stay up, do  _ something _ about this. She was a mistborn, she should be capable of anything. Yet, her pewter seemed to do nothing for her tiredness, and soon enough she’d fallen asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Vin’s tears had finally subsided. She’d cried all of them out, into her pillow, refusing to see anyone, except for Kelsier, briefly after that horrible, horrible night. Now, she sat in her room, hungry, tired, and all out of tears to sob. She sat with her knees folded against her chest, clinging to her pillow in front of her. 

Elend was dead. It still didn’t feel real. Just a few weeks ago they’d been swapping teasing jokes. Maybe she shouldn’t be so upset over this; she hadn’t known him for very long, after all. But damnit...she  _ loved _ him. And Shan had taken that away from her. 

Something was beginning to replace the tears inside Vin. That same something that had been born that night when she’d swallowed that atium and chased Elend’s killer. Hatred, hot and angry, began to fill her, like it was a metal she was burning. Shan had murdered Elend. Somehow, Sazed had convinced Vin to let her live. But no more. Shan had to pay for what she’d done.

A newfound determination filled Vin. She threw her pillow aside, and put on a change of clothes. Several vials were hanging from her belt; she took one and downed the contents, feeling the pools of power settle inside her. She didn’t know where Shan was, but Sazed would.

She stormed through Mansion Renoux. He’d be here, somewhere. Asking servants, she was directed to an unused guest room. Frowning, Vin followed the directions, rapping hard on the door.

It opened a moment later, and Sazed hurriedly slipped past it, being sure not to show Vin the contents of the room. “Lady Valette. What do you need?”

“Where’s Shan?” She demanded, unable to keep the anger from her voice.

Sazed looked saddened, almost  _ disappointed _ . Immediately Vin felt bad, like she’d just let down a family member. “Vin...will you really kill her?”

“I have to,” Vin whispered. “She killed Elend. She has to pay for that.”

“To snuff out life like that...is that really who you want to be, Lady Vin? Shan did something horrible,  _ personally _ horrible to you, I understand. Revenge will not satiate you, however. In the end, Elend is still dead, and you cannot bring him back, nor can killing Shan. Painful though it will be, that hole inside you that his death has left will remain, regardless of Shan being alive or dead.”

Vin felt her lip quiver as new tears formed in her eyes. Strange, she’d thought she was all out. “She killed him. She...took him away from me. She deserves it.”

Sazed took Vin in a hug, his long arms wrapping around her. “I know, child. If we all got what we deserved, there would be precious few of us left alive. She deserves death a dozen times over for the murders and crimes she has committed. But you have the choice to be better than that. Give her mercy, spare her. Show her you are not like the nobility.”

The fire of hatred was dying just as quickly as it had come, now replaced with shame. Oh, Vin still hated Shan, intensely. But Sazed was right, though she didn’t want to admit it. 

She pulled away from him, wiping away the tears from her eyes. “She’s just going to stay here now?”

Sazed nodded. “In her room. She’ll only be allowed to leave to go to the restroom, for now.”

Vin nodded. At least he wasn’t just letting her do whatever. “What if she finds out about...what we’re doing?” She lowered her voice, being sure Shan couldn’t hear from behind the doorway.

Sazed lowered his voice as well. “I have made it clear she is a captive, if one to be shown as much comfort as can be allowed. She will not be allowed to be able to listen in on us, or participate in any way.”

Vin looked up at him. “What’s the point of keeping her here, Sazed? I get what you said, about mercy, but...why don’t we just send her off to some far off dominance, where she can’t cause us trouble?”

“Well for one, she still needs to recover before she can go anywhere.” He paused, seeming hesitant. When he spoke, it was barely above a soft whisper; Vin had to lean in to hear. “For another, I’d been hoping to bring her to our side.”

Vin froze. “What?” She hissed.

“Another mistborn on the team would be invaluable. Think of all we could accomplish with three mistborn, working together. I have been discussing this with Kelsier, and he had reluctantly agreed to give it a shot.”

“Work together? With Shan?” Vin repeated incredulously. It was one thing to spare her, and quite another to agree to working with her.

Sazed put his hands out disarmingly. “I understand your feelings. However, in light of the odds we are up against, I am becoming more and more worried that we will not be able to beat the Lord Ruler as things are right now. Kelsier seems to have a plan, but he refuses to tell it to me. Perhaps, with three mistborn working side by side, defeating the Lord Ruler will be possible.”

Vin gawked at him. “Maybe, but Shan would never agree. She’s a self-centered, arrogant noble, not to mention, why would she care about our goals?”

“Well, the idea would be to persuade her to our side,” Sazed said, in that calming voice of his.

“There’s not much time left, Sazed,” Vin said. “Once the House War is started in earnest, we’ll have to make our move. We don’t have the time to convince her.”

A pained expression briefly coloured Sazed’s features, before they returned to a mere melancholy. He sighed sadly. “Yes. I am aware. I do not wish to seem as though I have no faith in Kelsier or his plans, but the fate of my people rests upon what we are doing. Another mistborn cannot hurt...and yet, you are correct. Convincing Shan will be difficult, given our time constraints. Perhaps this was foolish of me to attempt...but, no, I shouldn’t bother you with my own concerns. Please. You are going with Kelsier to meet with Marsh soon, are you not? You must get ready.”

She nodded, reluctantly stepping back. Her heart panged, and she felt wrong, somehow. “I’m sorry, Sazed. I shouldn’t be doubting you like this. You just want what’s best for us.”

Sazed gave her a caring smile. “Oh, child. You are only bringing up concerns I should have considered last night. Please, leave Shan to me.”

Vin nodded again. “Thank you, Sazed.”

There was something oddly soothing about Sazed. The Terrisman had a way about him, this strange ability to calm you down and make you see reason. Vin would have suspected emotional allomancy if she hadn’t known he was a feruchemist.

However, now, his words fading from her mind, Vin found their calming effect was diminished. That anger within her was returning slowly, and she found herself tempted to cling to that hate, her desire for revenge against Shan. She could do it, once she got back. The woman was without metals, and though Sazed had abilities of his own, surely he wouldn’t be able to stop Vin from swiftly sending a knife into Shan’s neck. It would be fitting. Just like how she’d killed Elend.

A sigh came from beside her. She blinked, and looked up at Kelsier. The older man raised a brow at her. “What’s on your mind, Vin?”

She averted her gaze. “Nothing.”

“Course it’s not nothing,” Kelsier replied. “Your...that Venture boy, got killed last night. It can’t be nothing.”

“I’m grieving,” Vin murmured. “That’s it.”

“Doesn’t look like it. Well, I mean, I’m sure you’re grieving, but there’s gotta be more. That’s not the face of someone who’s grieving. That’s the face of someone who’s got a grudge.”

Vin just looked at him, prompting him to connect the dots.

Kelsier sighed again. “I get where you’re coming from, Vin. Trust me, I know what it’s like to bear a grudge. I’m still like that, even now. Why do you think I want to kill the Lord Ruler so bad?”

Vin raised a brow at him. “So you think I’m right to want to get revenge on Shan?”

A pensive expression appeared on his features. “Hmm...the me of a few years ago--hell, a few  _ months _ ago, would have been gung ho about killing that noblewoman. I...I hate to admit it, but you’ve turned me, a bit. I’ve spied on that Elend boy before. He was...different. I used to imagine all noblemen as the same monsters, uncaring about the skaa, selfish to a fault. After you started showing an interest in him, I took to investigating him more. And he made me realize that they’re different. Oh, most of them are still brutal murderers, upholding a system that regularly kills the common folk. But some of them can be different.”

Vin stared at him flatly. “And you think Shan is different?”  _ I sincerely doubt that. _

He shrugged. “I haven’t done much research on her. Her family was all terrible--but heads of the Great Houses tend to share that quality. If she was willing to be an assassin for Elend, maybe she’s just like them. Hard to say.” He shook his head, letting out a sigh. “Look what you’ve done to me. Making me actually consider that noblemen might be good.”

Vin allowed a small grin to sneak onto her lips, the hate fading somewhat. “I thought you were part noble.”

“Emphasis on part,” he said, putting up a finger as he returned her grin twofold. “And I’ve rejected the noble side of me.”

They kept walking, the conversation dying, and as they did, Vin’s smile began to fade. “I can’t forgive her, Kelsier. She killed him.”

“No one’s saying forgive her. Sazed just doesn’t want her dead for no reason.”

She looked to him. “And do you agree with him?”

Kelsier stared ahead, thoughtful. “He and I had a long talk about it. I can’t deny the benefits of having another mistborn on the team. But to accept a noble? It’ll be hard, not just for me, and not just for you, but for the whole team. Not to mention that we could never truly be sure of her allegiances. She’s only with us now because she has no choice. Even if we somehow convinced her to join us, there’s no guarantee she wouldn’t just be putting on an act until we dropped our guards. And that’s not even considering how little time we have left til our plan goes off. It seems like a long desperate hope. I’m half tempted to just kill her and be done with it. But Sazed made a big speech about the value of life to me. So maybe I’ll just...send her off to some far-off dominance.”

“That’s what I suggested to him,” Vin said with a bitter chuckle.

Kelsier eyed her, before grinning. “Well, she’s not about to kill us in her current state, and things haven’t gone to crap just yet. If Sazed’s plan doesn’t work out, then, we’ll just let you kill her a bit later, alright?”

Vin smiled.  _ Funny how killing can become so ordinary to us. _ Well, they  _ were _ mistborn. Mistborn on a mission, specifically. As they walked, Vin knew they were nearing their destination. Marsh had recently contacted them and told them to meet with him. His spying had finally paid off, apparently.

The house had no light flickering past its windows, which made sense. Kelsier, whisper-soft even to Vin’s tin-enhanced ears, gently pushed the door open. Burning steel, Vin detected no movement of any blue lines from within the building. At last, Kelsier and Vin stepped inside.

The stench of death instantly hit Vin’s nose, made all the more powerful thanks to her tin. Feeling her heart drop, she stared at the mangled body on the ground. It was nothing but scattered bones and bloody remains, rendered unrecognizable. So they’d found him out, after all.

Kelsier’s face was hidden in shadow, but Vin could sense the intensity radiating off of him. They’d killed his brother, and though he’d confessed to having never cared much for the man, she knew that this was still a heavy blow for Kelsier.

“That’s it,” he whispered, breaking the silence. “They broke him. They know our plans. We have to move everything.”

Vin stepped forward hesitantly, laying a hand on his arm. “Kelsier…”

He turned away. “We should check the room. For anything he might have left us.”

They did so, Vin opting to check Marsh’s corpse so Kelsier didn’t have to. It was disgusting, but she soon found that there was nothing of worth among his torn up clothing. They both moved on to the room, and after some time, discovered some rolled up paper hidden in a table leg. A map.

Vin stared at it, wide-eyed. It showed where all the soothing stations across Luthadel were.  _ Damnit...that’s brilliant. _ Soothers to keep the skaa feeling oppressed. They should have guessed.

Kelsier appeared over her shoulder, studying the map. “Well, at least he still managed to get us help.” He patted Vin on the shoulder. “Roll that up and let’s get out of here. We need to move everyone, quickly.”


	3. Chapter 3

The Terrisman, Sazed, had been gone for some time, and Shan could tell something had happened. Though the servants kept her confined to the room, she could hear the sounds of people frantically talking and things being moved. She wished she had her zinc and brass; it was so frustrating not being able to manipulate her guards into telling her what was going on. Hell, it was frustrating having no metal but pewter. She missed being able to hear past doors with tin, missed being able to cover up her burning with copper, missed being able to check the movement of metal using steel and iron. The only thing she kept was the litheness and strength of pewter, but even that was essentially useless, being stuck in this one, tiny room.

At least she had mostly healed. Pewter had sped up the process considerably, and the bruises that had been scattered across her body were now little more than faintly red marks. She stretched in her bed, feeling barely any pain at all. Would she be allowed to travel beyond the walls of her room, now that she was better? Somehow, she doubted it. These people had no reason to be so nice, and she doubted the strangely kind Sazed had  _ that _ much sway here.

“Hey!” She called to the servant that was currently guarding her.

The boy flinched, and cocked his head at her. “Yes?”

“What’s going on out there?” Shan asked. This boy she’d never interacted with before--maybe he’d let slip what was happening.

“Er...wasing of the moving. The staying no longer ising. We…” he trailed off.

Shan frowned. What the hell was he saying? “Uh...right. So you’re moving? What for?”

“Notting of the saying.” He said, shaking his head.

“Oh, come on,” Shan said, struggling to parse the actual meaning of his words. “What’s going to happen to me if we’re moving? What happened to Sazed?”

The boy flushed, looking away. “Notting of the here. The moving of the crew wasing needing to. Um...waiting for Master Jumps.”

_ Master...what? _ Shan still wasn’t sure what exactly would be happening to them, but if they were moving, then this could be Shan’s chance. Instability, dealing with having to change locations, that would mean less energy spent on watching her. It would mean that Shan might be able to slip out.  _ I need metals, first. _ But no one would be crazy enough to give her some. How would she be able to nab them? 

Maybe she could sneak away without them. It would be harder, though, and she didn’t relish the idea of having to make the journey from here to Luthadel without allomancy. 

Well, it would have to be improvised, depending on how things went. Shan would have to rely on taking any opportunities that came her way. For the time, she stopped burning her pewter, letting it sit inside her, ready to be used if she needed it. Hopefully an opportunity would come today, otherwise she’d be forced to burn away the rest of the metal by the end of the night.

A loud bump came from outside her room, followed by what were likely servants cursing.  _ Why the move? _ Shan couldn’t help but be curious. Was it because of the House War? But House Renoux was situated in Fellise--the Terrisman hadn’t lied about that. They didn’t have to worry about being directly affected by the War.

Something bigger was going on, here. Something Shan found she wanted to know more about. She shook her head.  _ Idiot. You shouldn’t care about these nobodies. You need to confirm if your family is dead...and if they are, you need to build up your house again. _

A daunting task. But Shan was mistborn. She had been trained to take on tasks no other could handle. She could build her fortune back up, and she could certainly sneak out of this dump.

There came a sudden knock on the door. The boy flinched, and opened it a crack. It suddenly swung open, and in stepped...Valette?

No, Vin. Shan paled, and scrambled up against her headboard. This was it. She’d finally come to kill her, now that Sazed wasn’t guarding her. Pewter wouldn’t be enough against a full mistborn. Shan would last only a few seconds.

“Get up,” Vin spat.

Shan frowned. “What?”

“We’re going. Get up.”

“You’re not…” She trailed off.  _ You’re not going to kill me? _

“V-Vin,” the servant boy stammered. “Notting the coming of Master Jumps?”

She shook her head. “Kelsier’s got his hands full in Luthadel. I’m escorting her.”

Shan stared at her. “Escorting...where?”

“Why would I tell you?” Vin said, voice venomous. She paused, glancing to the side, before sighing. “We’re taking you to Luthadel. Might as well tell you now, since you’ll figure it out on the way.”

“Why?” Shan asked, slowly stepping out of bed.

Vin glared at her. “Spook, you’re seeing us off the property. Make sure I don’t kill her.”

Shan eyed the girl. She really was tiny, but here, knowing that she had all her metals and Shan was a powerless girl, Shan was cowed.  _ Idiot, _ she thought again.  _ Why do you keep testing these people? _ If she wanted to escape--hell, if she wanted to not die, she should quit talking.

Except, at her heart, talking was her strength. Zinc and brass were her best metals, the ones she used most often, especially at the political playgrounds of balls, and they worked best when accompanied by a few choice words.

Vin seemed to be getting impatient, so Shan stood up and hesitantly followed her out the door, alongside the boy, apparently named Spook. Shan hurriedly took in her surroundings, finally freed from the room. Indeed, the mansion appeared to be in the middle of a move, with furniture being carried by servants and people streaming back and forth in a rush. Vin guided them through the halls, staring straight forward and ignoring the buzz. The boy, Spook, followed, and seemed to flinch at every noise.

Eventually they reached the front doors, where things were being taken out of in a steady flow. Vin took them outside, where ash fell gently from the sky and coated the ground. Shan frowned, looking around. Were they going to be taking a carriage? Or was Vin going to pull Shan out of sight of Spook and the rest of the servants and kill her covertly?

No, that seemed unlikely at this point. Still, if it was Vin who was escorting Shan, it would be a lot trickier to slip away. Shan eyed the vials of metal on her belt. Could she steal one and quickly drink it? Vin might be quick enough with those blades, though, to kill her before the metals settled in her stomach.

They reached the edges of the property, coming to a stop. Vin, turned to Spook. “Alright, I’ll take it from here. Thanks, Spook.” She actually cracked a smile.

The boy blushed, and nodded, before hurrying away.

Now, it was just the two of them. Vin turned, meeting Shan’s eyes with undeniable hatred. 

“So, what now?” Shan asked, unable to stop herself. “Gonna walk all the way to Luthadel? Or do you have enough coins to--whoa!”

Vin suddenly scooped her up in her arms, and set down a coin, launching off into the air before Shan could react. Though Shan was more than used to flying through the air, the suddenness of it and the odd position she was in made her heart leap. She clung to Vin involuntarily as they arced through the night--but instead of hitting the ground, they again soared higher, as though Vin was Pushing on something--but she hadn’t tossed any coins below her. What?

Shan looked down. Were those...pieces of metal in the ground?  _ A highway, _ she realized. Someone had installed a highway of metal between Fellise and Luthadel, for mistborn to use exclusively.  _ Genius. _ Why had no one thought to do that before?  _ Granted, I’ve never needed to leave Luthadel. _ Luthadel was the center of all that was important in the Final Empire; why would you need to leave it?  _ Are highways like this common outside Luthadel, then? _

As they bounded their way across the ashen hills, Shan’s eyes drifted from the ground below up to Vin. The small girl stared straight ahead, as though determined not to acknowledge Shan. Just what was going on behind her stoic expression? Such a mystery...until recently, Shan hadn’t considered Vin to be anything more than a pitiful, foolish young noblewoman. But she was clearly so much more. A mistborn, for one, but also capable, even confident in some ways. Who was she?

Moreover, what was going on with House Renoux? Who was Kelsier, and what was he doing in Luthadel? There was clearly something bigger happening, something beyond a tiny house trying to secure power and alliances. If they were still active in Luthadel, at the doorstep of the House War, then they were either suicidal or they had a plan. What could it possibly be? This whole thing was strange; a Terrisman who had sway over a mistborn, a girl who genuinely loved another noble, a servant boy who spoke in a manner unlike Shan had ever heard. These people were undeniably odd, though Shan had yet to piece together what their game was.

“So,” she called past the wind, unable to stand the silence between the two mistborn any longer. “What’s waiting for us in Luthadel?”

Vin glared at her, as though she had broken her concentration. “You’re getting confined again. And I’m not about to tell you what the rest of us are doing there.”

“Just trying to get to know my captors,” Shan said with a shrug. “Your name’s Vin, right? Not Valette?”

Vin stiffened at that, but said nothing.

“Intriguing,” Shan continued. “Wonder what the point of a fake name was? As a noblewoman, you shouldn’t have anything to hide. Unless...you’re not really a noblewoman.”  _ I hadn’t even considered that, _ Shan realized as she spoke. “Vin isn’t a very noble name, I notice. What self-respecting parents would call you Vin? Valette, now that’s much better. Odd, very odd.”

Vin met her eyes, fury and hate burning within them. “You’re extremely irritating, you know that?”

“I pride myself on it,” Shan said, grinning. “When people hate you, they tend to focus only on how much they hate you instead of remaining level-headed and noticing anything clever you might be doing. Like, for instance, pretending to be nothing more than a Soother.”

Vin’s eyes narrowed, and for a moment Shan thought she might actually drop her. But she sighed, and shook her head. “It’s pointless talking to you.”

“I don’t know about that. You--”

Vin cut her off immediately. “I hate you. You killed Elend. You’ve probably killed dozens of others. You deserve to die a hundred times over. The only reason I haven’t killed you yet is because Sazed reminded me that we’re better than you.”

Shan rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. All noblemen are guilty of doing something worthy of their death, whether they like it or not. That’s just how it is when you’re a noble. You’re telling me you’re completely innocent? That you don’t deserve to die as well?”

Vin glanced at her, before returning to staring straight ahead. There was something there, in those eyes. Not reluctant admission that Shan had won that argument, but something else. This girl was hiding something. And for some reason, Shan wanted to find out what.

Any conversation died off as they continued their journey along the metal highway, Shan still clinging to Vin. She felt humiliated; a mistborn shouldn’t have to desperately hold on to someone else in this undignified manner. But she was in no position to really get back any of her dignity, so she reluctantly suffered through it. At least Vin seemed plenty capable of carrying her; pewter would help with that. And she really  _ did _ seem competent; she was a well-trained mistborn, that much was clear. Shan tried to ignore the part of her that grew jealous about it.

Soon enough, Luthadel appeared, the lights of keeps twinkling in the night. Shan thought some of those lights were  _ fires _ \--the first signs that the House War was starting. She stared at those fires grimly, before noting how many rising black silhouettes were devoid of light. Empty keeps. Some of them would be those long dead, but one of them would be her own Keep Elariel, assuming Sazed had been telling the truth. 

Shan tried not to think about that, closing her eyes and letting herself feel the gentle bouncing of Vin’s Pushes. Eventually, they slowed, and stopped before a shop. Shan frowned as Vin set her down.

“Inside,” the smaller girl ordered.

“Alright, no need to be pushy, princess,” Shan muttered, heading into the seemingly unoccupied shop. The door creaked open into a shop floor that smelled of sawdust. Shan looked around, waiting for an ambush of some sort. The door shut, causing her to flinch, but it was just Vin, who cracked a small smile at Shan’s jumpiness.

Shan rolled her eyes, but continued on inside. “So what’s the point of us coming here, anyway? A dead skaa hovel? Are you seriously going to keep me here?”

Vin shook her head. “Go beyond that door.”

Shan stared in the direction she was pointing, and noticed that there was some faint light streaming through the crack between the door and the floor. Slowly, she pushed it open, blinking as she came upon a hallway. Frowning, she made her way down it, prompted by Vin coming up behind her and crossing her arms. Only one door was open along the corridor, and Shan peered around it hesitantly.

A large woman stood within, her body muscled and strong. She smiled pleasantly as Shan stepped inside. “Hey, there. You must be Shan.”

“Ham,” Vin’s voice came from behind Shan. “No need for pleasantries.”

The woman, Ham, sighed. “Not everyone’s as blunt as you are, Vin.” She pulled out a long piece of fabric from her pocket and held it up. “Sorry, but we’re going to have to blindfold you. Can’t have you knowing where our hideout is.”

Shan sighed. “Fine. Not like I have a choice.”

She stood there, arms crossed, as Ham pulled the blindfold over her eyes and tied it tightly around the back of her head. They really weren’t taking any chances; it was tied so tight Shan couldn’t see a thing. Even the light which had been illuminating the room was dulled to nothing behind the thick fabric.

It felt so wrong to be without tin, now. Though her other senses felt heightened now that sight had been stripped from her, Shan couldn’t help but feel lacking without the detailed information tin had always given her. She couldn’t hear the breathing of Vin and Ham as they towed her through the shop, couldn’t smell anything beyond the overwhelming odor of sawdust, couldn’t feel the floorboards beneath her boots.

Vin suddenly picked her up again, without warning, and they were off into the air again. This time, Shan let out a squeal involuntarily and clung much tighter to Vin as they flew.  _ Idiot, _ she thought to herself. So much for her confident mistborn demeanour.

It didn’t take long before they touched down again. Shan felt the atmosphere change, the falling ash disappear, meaning they had gone inside. Soon, voices began to arise.

“Vin.” An older man?

“Where should I put her?” Vin said.

“We don’t exactly have all the room in the world right now. Just...put her in that room there.”

Shan was suddenly towed away again, and heard a door creak as she was deposited on a bed.  _ We can’t be in a keep, surely. _ And from what that Ham woman had said, this was supposed to be a hideout of some sort. Definitely not a keep, then. House Renoux had locations hidden among the skaa?  _ Just great. I’m back in Luthadel, but I’ve traded a guest room for a rundown skaa shack. _

A door shut. Then, hands pulled off her blindfold. Shan blinked, and stared up at Vin and an older man with blond hair and what already struck her as an insufferable grin.

“Hey there,” the older man said.

Shan frowned at him. “Uh...hi.”

“So, here’s how things are gonna be,” he said, clapping his hands together. “You’re going to be confined to this room, just like in Fellise. However, unlike there, you are not going to be guarded by Sazed. I need him elsewhere. Instead, I will have guards switch on and off; they will be trusted people I know I can afford to spare. At night, when she’s not on duty, you’ll sleep with Vin. This room has two beds, as you can see.”

Both Shan and Vin whirled on him. “ _ What? _ ” They both demanded in unison.

“I’ll explain it to you later, Vin,” he said, putting out his hands. “For now, I’ve...got something I need to do. You’ve had a long day; why don’t you take a rest for now? Both of you.”

Without letting them protest, he turned on his heel and shut the door behind them. Vin stood there, seeming dumbfounded, before she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She shot Shan a glare. “I am  _ not _ staying with you.”

“Sounds like you don’t have a choice,” Shan replied, laying back on her bed. “Unless that guy  _ isn’t _ in charge of you.” He’d spoken with a level of authority Shan had come to recognize in the heads of noble houses, the kind of authority that made it clear they were in charge, purely by the way they spoke.

Vin visibly  _ seethed _ at that. “Whatever. I don’t like sleeping at night, anyway.” She flung open the door and slammed it shut behind her.

Sighing, Shan put her hands behind her head and stared up at the wooden ceiling. Well, she was in Luthadel, at least. 

Now to figure out how to get away from these people.


	4. Chapter 4

It was the middle of the night when Shan awoke. She heard voices, even without tin to aid her ears. What were people doing up and talking at this hour?  _ Well, this  _ is _ a hideout. _ And she had yet to actually figure out what these people were up to. Could she eavesdrop from here?

Tentatively, she crept out of bed, checking to make sure that Vin hadn’t returned at some point. Sure enough, the puny mistborn was gone. Shan grinned, and held her ear up to the door. The voices were clearer, but still muffled. She couldn’t make out any words.

Huffing, Shan slowly twisted the doorknob and cracked the door open. Surely no one would be on guard, right? They’d assume Vin was watching her. Now would be the perfect time to listen in on some secrets.  _ Or to escape. _ A part of Shan desperately wanted to go, but she knew that there would be more guards blocking the way out. Unfortunately, if she ever wanted to leave, she’d have to obtain metals.

For now, she’d have to work with what she had. And what she had was the opportunity to eavesdrop. The door cracked open further, creaking a little and causing Shan to wince, but no one seemed to notice. Growing braver, Shan opened it enough to stick her head out. The hallway beyond was dark and empty of people, but the voices were coming from an open door a ways ahead.

Just as Shan had suspected, there were no guards posted at her door. Grinning, she tentatively stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her. With as lithe steps as she could manage without pewter to aid her, she crept down the corridor and sidled up along the wall, stopping just at the edge of the door where the voices were coming from. Now, they were much clearer.

“...crazy, Kelsier,” a man’s voice came. It had a refined tone to it, similar to what Shan was used to in noblemen. “Do you realize what destroying the Pits will do?”

“I’m well aware,” an older man’s voice. The same man who’d spoken with Shan last night. His name was Kelsier, then? “Now that the Pits are gone, there’s no more atium.”

There was a pause. “And that’s a good thing?” A woman’s voice came. Ham, Shan recognized.

“Yes,” the refined man said slowly. “Yes, it is. You genius. You destroyed the Final Empire’s economy. Everything that the Lord Ruler and the noblemen rely on. They’re ruined for decades, maybe centuries.”

An awed pause. Shan blinked. The Pits? The Pits of Hathsin? What did they mean, destroyed? And...no more atium? How was that possible?  _ The Pits...are the source of the atium? _ It suddenly clicked. Of course. No one would suspect that atium should be harvested at the place where people were sent to die. But the Lord Ruler could make use of that slave labour, have them mine his atium for him.  _ And...somehow, they destroyed them? _ Shan didn’t know how that was possible...but if it was true, and there was no more atium...this would be bad, once the House War was over.

“Hold on,” Kelsier’s voice broke through her thoughts. Then his footsteps grew closer. Shan felt a spike of alarm. He’d heard her! How? Was he a tineye? Before she could escape, the blond man peeked around the corner, and narrowed his eyes on her. “Ah. Come to join the party, have you?”

“I…” Shan began.

“Oh, don’t worry yourself,” Kelsier said, grinning. “You didn’t listen to anything that important. Shoulda been more strict with guards, though. Did Vin sneak off?”

Shan was at a loss, her mouth refusing to work, for once.

“Kelsier, what’s…” Ham’s voice. Then she peered around the corner as well, and her eyes widened. “She’s out!”

Kelsier nodded. “She’s not doing any harm, though. I’d have been surprised if she hadn’t taken this opportunity to do something like this.” He stepped out into the hall, and put his hand on Shan’s shoulder. “Can’t let you leave again, though. Sorry.”

“Ah, Kelsier,” another voice came. From behind Shan, this time. She looked over her shoulder and saw Sazed appear from a different door along the hall, wearing spectacles. “She was eavesdropping, was she?”

Kelsier nodded.

“I have...an idea. Would you allow the young lady to come with me for the night?”

Kelsier frowned, but shrugged, releasing his hand from Shan’s shoulder. “Sure. Just be back by the end of the night.”

Shan raised an eyebrow at Sazed as he stepped out into the hall and beckoned her to follow.  _ What now? _ She trailed after the Terrisman as they strode in the opposite direction of her room. Sazed provided no answers, no clues as to his plans for her as they strode out of the hideout and into the open street.

_ So much for the blindfold, _ Shan thought. She surveyed the street the hideout was located on, noting its details, before Sazed continued on. They walked, wordless, weaving their way through the city.

“You’re an odd one, Sazed,” she at last said. If she was alone with him, she might as well try and glean some information.

“That seems to be my most obvious trait,” he replied, his voice perfectly calm as always.

“I’ve never met another Terrisman like you,” Shan went on. “They’re all usually so subservient. You...you seem to make decisions for yourself. Other people listen to you.”  _ But, I’m guessing they’re not really noblemen in the first place. _ Noblemen didn’t hole up in some skaa hovel, weren’t  _ this _ odd. If these people really were skaa, perhaps it was normal for them to listen to a Terrisman as though he was their leader.

_ Does that mean Vin’s not noble? _ The thought appeared in her mind, suddenly.  _ No. She has to be. Skaa can’t be allomancers. _ Shan shook her head. Why was she thinking about Vin now?

“You’ll find I am not like other Terrismen,” Sazed answered. “Whether that is for the best or the worst, I have yet to decide.”

Shan frowned at that comment; it had seemed more a personal aside than directed at her. She decided to change the subject. “So why are you taking me out here in the middle of the night? Punishment for eavesdropping?”

“No, nothing so barbaric. You shall see, soon enough.”

They continued on, Sazed gone silent, Shan unable to think of another topic to bring up. As they walked, making their way through the city’s winding streets, Shan found her mind wandering again. Why would these people let her go off alone in the night with Sazed? Surely they knew she could easily slip away from him, and he wouldn’t be able to catch her. 

They passed by an alleyway. It was dark, and one of the shacks next to it was clearly falling apart, abandoned. If Shan hid in there, she might go undetected, be able to run away when Sazed had given up looking. His back was turned to her.

She veered away, quietly as she could, and snuck into the alleyway. There was no outcry from Sazed, no move to stop her. Grinning, she pressed herself up against the wall, trusting the shadow that fell over the alleyway to keep her from being detected. Seconds passed. Shan eyed a window into the ramshackle house next to her. Quickly, and quietly, she scrambled through it, stumbling over debris and scattered furniture. All she had to do was wait here a little bit. Sazed would give up, and then she could run off.

Sazed suddenly appeared in a blur, stopping suddenly within the hovel. His expression was calm and serene, his arms behind his back. Shan flinched.

“I would not advise trying to run away from us,” he said, as though talking about a subject as mundane as the weather. “We are not the fools you take us for. Come, now.”

Reluctantly, Shan stood, and followed him out of the shack.  _ Damnit. _ Was he secretly a tineye? Was that even possible, for Terrismen?  _ But how did he move so fast? I didn’t imagine that, right? _

As they continued, Shan keeping her head down, staring at the ground, Sazed spoke. “Lady Shan, do you know anything about who we are?”

_ Why does he call me Lady Shan? It’s not like we’re in a ball. _ “I know you’re the strangest group of people I’ve ever met. I know you’ve got some plan, but I can’t tell what exactly that is.”

Sazed smiled. “A plan. Yes, exactly. I suspect Kelsier wouldn’t want me revealing this so openly, but I believe it is necessary at this point. We are running out of time. Shan, we are no noblemen. House Renoux was nothing more than a front. Our true purpose is to end the Final Empire.”

She stared at him, dumbfounded. “You’re kidding, right?”

He shook his head. “Not in the slightest. The Lord Ruler is an oppressive tyrant, even for noblemen. The skaa are murdered on a regular basis and the nobles are forced to assassinate each other for personal gain. It is a dark world we live in. We mean to see that world ended, a new, better one made in its place.”

Shan let out a small, incredulous laugh. “That’s crazy. End the Final Empire? Stop the Lord Ruler? That’s impossible. He’s immortal. People have tried countless times before to stop him. It never works.”

“I know. And yet, our plan has so far succeeded. The source of the Lord Ruler’s economy is destroyed, the noblemen are killing themselves over a House War, and the skaa in Luthadel are in such unrest that with a bit of a push, they will be incited to rebellion. Luthadel will burn before long, and the Lord Ruler will be too late to stop it. All we have to do then is kill him.”

He spoke of the act as though it was simple. And yet, Shan had to admit their plans seemed soberingly sound. Accomplish all that he had mentioned, and you might actually be able to fell the Final Empire. “That’s...I…” She began, unable to find her words. “Why are you telling me this?”

Sazed stopped suddenly. “We are here.”

Shan looked up. Before her, a keep stood high. It was completely dark. No guards patrolled its heights. Shan knew this keep well.  _ Keep Elariel. _ She felt her heart stop, before it fell from her chest entirely. Her whole body paled, and she stared in shock at the husk of her former home.

“It’s...gone,” she whispered. “All gone.”

Sazed nodded solemnly.

“My family…” Shan felt her knees go weak. No tears welled up in her eyes. She had held no love for her family, but to lose them...it meant losing everything that made her important. She was by blood still an Elariel, but that meant nothing if she had no house, no keep, no money, no manpower. Everything had been ripped from her.  _ How could I have been so foolish? There’s no way to come back from this. _ The only way to regain relevance in the court, return to her old life, would be by marrying into another family--but the House War had started, and no one would be willing, not to mention that she no longer had anything to offer alongside her hand. She was a noble no longer. In one swift moment, Shan had been lowered to the position of a lowly skaa.

“I am truly sorry,” Sazed said, behind her. “As part of the mission to start the House War, Kelsier murdered your family, sparking fear and aggression from the other houses. I do not expect you to forgive us, but I did need you to see this for yourself. Now, you know for certain.”

Shan slowly turned away, her emotions a mess, her head spinning. “You got what you wanted, didn’t you? Revenge on the noblemen for treating you skaa like trash. Now I’m no one.”

“You are not no one, child. You are a confident, strong, powerful young woman, and a mistborn at that. Money, your House, those things do not make you  _ you _ . You can still make a difference. This is not the end of your story.”

Shan chuckled bitterly. “So? You’d have me join your stupid group of rebels? Get myself killed trying to take down the Lord Ruler?”

“I would have you make whatever decision your heart tells you to. We do not control you, ultimately, Lady Shan. Your choice is your own. You may join us, or you may not. However, know that should you elect to go your own way, your path is uncertain. I do not know if you could ever have the life you desire. With us, we can guarantee you something I suspect you have not experienced before.”

Shan frowned. “What’s that? Dirty skaa shacks?”

“Friends,” Sazed answered. “People you can trust, and who trust you in turn. People who care about you. With us, you can have a life better than any keep could have provided for you. And, should you elect to aid us in our efforts, we would not be remiss to accept your help.”

Shan stared at the ground. She could tell. His words were clearly meant to steer her towards joining him, influence her to his side. “Take me back to my room.” She grumbled.

Sazed opened his mouth, before closing it with a melancholic look. “Of course, my lady.”

Vin hovered above Luthadel. She had placed a trio of coins in a triangle on the roof of an abandoned keep below, and was Pushing on all three of them, adjusting as needed. Below her, the city slept--but not the nobles. Distantly, a keep was on fire, and Vin thought she could make out a tiny mistborn in the fray. The House War was underway, and soon enough all of Kelsier’s plans would come to their head. 

None of that was on Vin’s mind, however. Ever since she had discovered her mistborn abilities, she’d found it calming to float up here, out beyond the world, out beyond her cares and worries. She wished tonight was misty; the mists always calmed her, for some reason. Closing her eyes, Vin let her mind drift away.

A distant, lingering pang of frustration returned to her.  _ Kelsier... _ she couldn’t believe he’d saddled her with Shan. Didn’t he realize how much she hated her? At least it was only nighttimes she would be forced to stay in the same room as Shan. She wouldn’t have to interact with her if she was asleep.

Her ears, enhanced by tin, caught a swooping noise. She opened her eyes, and saw a figure, a mistborn, shooting up towards her. She briefly panicked, but quickly recognized Kelsier’s scarred arms and blond hair. 

“Hey,” he called, Pushing himself up to her level and grinning at her. “You finished brooding yet?”

“I’m not brooding,” Vin said indignantly.

He chuckled. “Come on. I wanna talk.”

Sighing, Vin let herself fall, Pushing herself to a stop just before she hit the ground. Kelsier followed suit, and the two collected their coins before leaping off the abandoned keep and hitting the ground.

“I assume you ran off because I assigned you to rooming with Shan, right?” Kelsier guessed as they walked.

Vin looked up at him. “You know I hate her. I don’t want anything to do with her.”  _ Not to mention that I’ll probably kill her if I spend any substantial amount of time around her. _

“I know, Vin,” Kelsier replied with a sigh. “But we need her on our side now, or else we gotta get rid of her. Sazed is trying to convince her to join us, but it won’t be enough. We need another mistborn, another girl, to connect with her, show her what it’s like to be a member of our crew. Be her friend.”

Vin froze. “I’m  _ not _ going to be her friend. I’ll let her live, I’ll even accept spending nights in the same room as her, but I’m not about to get chummy with her. She killed Elend. I’m never forgiving her.”

A lengthy pause. Vin glanced over at Kelsier. At least, he nodded. “I understand you, Vin. I really do get it. It makes my blood boil to actually let a noble live in our hideout, actually allow her to join the crew. If you want, I’ll send her away tonight. Off to some distant dominance, where you’ll never see her again, and she’ll never be of concern to us. I’ll give you that choice, power over that girl’s fate.”

Kelsier turned as he spoke, meeting Vin’s eyes. She felt a weight settle into her with his words. Suddenly, she wasn’t so sure she could send Shan away. Why? This should be a simple, easy choice. She hated her, didn’t she? Getting rid of her would be deeply satisfying. And yet, Vin couldn’t deny how useful another mistborn on the crew would be.  _ And...she is a bit charming. In an annoying, infuriating way. _

Kelsier put his hands up. “I’ll let you sleep on it. Just...consider the pros and cons.”

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Vin stared at the ground as they strode through the empty streets, mind abuzz with thoughts. Should she keep Shan around? What would that mean for them? Would a third mistborn even matter? Vin still had no idea how they were going to kill the Lord Ruler.

She eyed Kelsier as they neared the new base. “Kelsier?”

He smiled at her. “Yes?”

“How are we going to beat the Lord Ruler?”

He blinked. “Curious about that now, are you? Should have figured.” He sighed, sticking his hands in his pockets. “The eleventh metal is my main plan. I’ve only got a bit of it, and once we’ve cornered the Lord Ruler, I’ll use it to kill him.”

“But you don’t know what it does,” Vin said. “What if it doesn’t kill him? Or what if you burn it all away before you can figure out how it works?”

Kelsier just laughed. “Yeah, I admit, it’s not the most amazing plan. But...that’s why you always have a backup.”

There was a silence. Vin waited for him to elaborate, but he remained quiet. “And the backup is?”

“Sorry,” he replied softly. “Can’t say. It’s the sort of plan that relies on no one other than me knowing.”

Vin stared at him. There was a certain look to his face, behind that grin.  _ Whatever he’s planning, it can’t be good _ . She sighed. Well, no good would come from dwelling on it. Kelsier was stubborn, and he wasn’t about to give up his secrets so easily.

The new hideout came into view as they rounded a corner. They headed inside, and Kelsier stopped just before the meeting room. “Things are going to be alright, Vin. No matter what happens.”

With that, he left, shutting the door behind him. Vin stood there, alone in the hallway, uncertain what to make of his words. Finally, she shook her head and opened the door to her room.

Shan was there, lying on her bed. Vin sighed, remembering their rooming situation. Whatever. As long as she was asleep, she couldn’t annoy Vin. Removing her mistcloak, Vin sat on her bed and slid under the covers--

Shan sat up. Vin frowned, waiting for an irritating remark--until she noticed that the other girl’s eyes were red.  _ Has she been crying? _

“Vin,” she said. Her voice was soft, lacking the sardonic tone it usually had.

Vin sat up, raising a confused eyebrow at Shan. What had happened? “Uh...yeah?”

Shan stared at the ground, her features contorted, sad, grim. “What...is it like, for you? Here, with these people.”

Vin stared at her.  _ What is she talking about? _ “I…”

“Sazed already told me,” Shan interjected. “About what you people are. You’re trying to overthrow the Lord Ruler. You’re trying to end the Final Empire.”

Vin paled. Had Sazed really explained that? Well, she couldn’t have known unless he had. “Um...yeah. We are.”

A bitter laugh escaped Shan’s lips. “Stupid...what kind of morons would try something like that?”

A pang of anger went through Vin. “At least we’re trying. You noblemen wouldn’t get it. You like the way things are. Well, for us skaa, it’s horrible. Excuse us for wanting things to change.”

Shan stared at Vin, almost seeming to  _ study _ her. “So you’re a skaa?”

Vin frowned. “Of course I am.” Had...had she thought she was still noble?

“Should have realized,” Shan muttered. “Of course, not every nobleman would successfully get rid of their illegitimate children. Some would slip through the cracks. Noble blood, in your veins. Granting you allomancy.” She sighed, sitting back against the wall. “It never occurred to me. Noblemen, we don’t consider skaa to be truly people. They’re slaves, barely at human intelligence. But that’s not true, is it? You’re all skaa, aren’t you? Skaa smart enough to pull off a heist big enough to take down the Final Empire. We were wrong.” She stared at her lap, expression darkening, voice growing softer. “We’re wrong about a lot of things.” After a moment, she looked up, meeting Vin’s eyes. “I hated it there, Vin. Oh, I won’t deny that being at the top of the pile, above everyone else, made me feel strong. But the court was a hellscape. Secrets, backstabbing, lies, false faces. I was good at it...but I don’t think I ever enjoyed it. Not truly. It was a way of life. The life I’d always known, the life I’d accepted. I even hid my true self from my parents. I’d never truly been  _ me _ . I hated that feeling, of always having to hide, always having to cover up, to lie.” She shook her head. “Knowing that the skaa are...well, no different from us...it makes me wonder. What is it like for you? Without the court, without the balls and the political maneuvering, surely you must have….true friends. Right?” The way she asked the question, it seemed almost like she was  _ pleading _ with Vin. 

Vin was speechless for a moment. She didn’t know how to react, how to respond to the sudden, unexpectedly candid speech. No longer was Shan a bratty, arrogant noblewoman. Now, Vin saw a scared girl, a girl with nothing left, a girl on her last legs. 

_ She killed Elend. You hate her. _

Vin ignored that voice. “Friends...weren’t always something I had. For skaa, life is hard. You work till your back breaks, every day, for a tiny amount of food and the opportunity to live a little longer. Some skaa, they make things better for themselves. They start up thieving crews, steal from noblemen. It’s a lot better than sweeping the streets or working in the plantations. In turn, however, it means that you’re all alone. You give up the family and the community that comes with honest work. Some crew leaders, they’re mean. Cruel. They beat you, they make sure you fear them. If you’re me, you grow up in these thieving crews, and you never learn what friends are, because everyone around you is in the exact same position--trying to survive, and stepping on anyone who gets in their way.

“Kelsier showed me that thieving crews didn’t have to be that way. Instead of fear, his crew was built upon trust. Everyone here cares about each other. They’re all friends. It was such an odd concept to me, at first. I didn’t think that it was possible, to not be absolutely controlling of the people who worked for you. But I’ve learned. Now, I have friends of my own. People who actually care about me...and people I care for in turn. Working with them can be crazy and stressful, but that’s part of the deal when you try to overthrow an empire. I get through it, because I have them by my side.”

There was a long silence. Shan stared at the floor, expression unreadable. At last, she slid under the covers of the bed and lay back. “Thanks,” she murmured softly.

“For what?”

“For sharing,” Shan said, rolling over and showing her back to VIn.

_ I don’t get her, _ Vin thought with a sigh. Still, she’d shown a side of herself Vin had never seen before. It was...strangely endearing. For once, Shan hadn’t been entirely hateable. Vin actually found herself almost...liking her.

_ Something must be wrong with me, _ Vin thought, lying back down and closing her eyes.


End file.
